i realize my info is out dated, its been since before 1980 that i actually have seen the inside of a high-school classroom.

i made my list according to the classes i remember from back then.

but although i realize i put an "other" just in case something changed in the years since, i am curious, what is other? what were the votes/courses of the others?

of the umpteen jobs i have had since then, math has made the biggest impact, followed closely by reading.

for those of you looking at my current job title and thinking (this guy is so stupid he drive school busses) i chose to drive, i used to be a supervisor before that, the job was just too stressful.. before that i had a myriad of machines to operate, including a multi-million dollar computerized saw (which math most definitely helped)

the point is, you never know what you are destined to do, don't cheat yourself, by focusing on one branch/area.

/ 2cents

Rant indeed, flawed also. You can't just teach people trig or whatever at a set age - the reason education is going down the pan is because the authorities (not the teachers) adopt a "one size fits all" policy. It doesnt work, science has proved people have different strengths and weaknesses, and different backgrounds (social/economic) so it is naive and unfair on pupils to assume they should be at a certain level at a certain age.

Setting targets destroys peoples enjoyment and understanding of school altogether.

Disclaimer: nor do I support invidualist teaching, to thwart an obvious comeback by anyone

People will not learn mathematics at age x, or if teaching methods were better or different they STILL WOULD NOT.

not everyone has a scientifically/mathematically geared brain, or an english and art geared mind - everyone develops at different rates - there are far too many variables for the ideas of target setting for all, or standardising education to make measures of people. im afraid the current educational systems around the world dont work, but nor will your suggestions.

I do not teach myself, but having worked to help out in schools (my parents are teachers, one of my sisters is and my other sister is studying early education) and being fairly well versed on the ins and outs of curriculums and classes, you learn to accept there is no perfect solution - and testing, targetting and measuring is a surefire way to ruin schooling altogether.

Teaching methods are fine, blame your Government and the Education department. There are bad teachers, and there are good - but never blame them all as one entity, or their methods.

I didn't say anything about a rigorous curriculum, i'm saying its unfair, unwise and unhealthy for CHILDREN to be learning advanced mathematics/english/science/any other subject. Research consistently prove that early years children learn better through play rather than direct education, and play cannot be mixed with higher standards. It's a recipe for disaffection and apathy towards schools if you attemped a program or trial along these lines.

You seem to base a lot of your own assumptions about teaching methods and related quarms on your own school days. I was under the impression you were at University now, so there cannot be much gone wrong with your schooling. There is much dreaming and great ideas to be made on the subject of education/state education, and the fact of the matter is most of them are completely redundant from the outset.